Usually when a stud pitching prospect gets called up from Double-A just a month after his 20th birthday and throws 5.1 innings of two-run ball while making a spot start in place of the reigning Cy Young winner it’s cause for excitement, but instead Madison Bumgarner’s debut last night has people wonderingwhat happened to his fastball.
Bumgarner has been an elite prospect since the Giants picked him 10th overall in the 2007 draft and his numbers in the minors are the stuff of video games set to “beginner.” He went 27-5 with a 1.65 ERA and 256/55 K/BB ratio in 273 innings prior to being called up, including 9-1 with a 1.93 ERA at Double-A this season.
Along with the first-round pedigree and insanely good numbers Bumgarner also comes with glowing scouting reports like this one from Baseball America: “There may not be a left-hander with a better fastball than Bumgarner’s. He hits 97 mph with minimal effort, consistently pitches at 93-94 and hitters have trouble picking up his heater from his high three-quarters delivery.”
Everyone who tuned into the Giants-Padres game last night expecting to see the 20-year-old phenom with a sub-2.00 ERA and mid-90s fastball instead saw a guy who topped out in the low-90s and worked mostly in the high-80s. There are reports that Bumgarner’s velocity has been dropping throughout the season and his declining strikeout rates back that up even if his sparkling ERA doesn’t.
Bumgarner struck out 187 batters in 166 innings between rookie-ball and Single-A, which works out to an outstanding 10.1 strikeouts per nine innings. However, after moving up to Double-A he managed only 69 strikeouts in 107 innings, which equals just 5.8 per nine innings. He’s also seen his walk rate nearly double while serving up significantly more homers, including a pair of long balls against the Padres last night.
Rob Neyer of ESPN wonders if the Giants “have backed Bumgarner off his big fastball in favor of better control of his breaking ball and more consistency with his changeup” because “it’s hard to think a guy with a 1.85 ERA is hurt.” That makes sense to me, but it’s also possible that a pitcher who logged nearly 300 pro innings before turning 20 is simply fatigued and showing decreased velocity without actually being hurt.
Depending on Tim Lincecum’s back injury, we may have to wait until next season to find out.

Brewers’ right-hander Phil Bickford received a 50-game suspension after testing positive for a drug of abuse, per the Los Angeles Times’ Bill Shaikin. This is the second time Bickford has been suspended for recreational drug use, as he was previously penalized in 2015 after testing positive for marijuana prior to the amateur draft.

Bickford was selected by the Giants in the first round of the 2015 draft and was later dealt to the Brewers for lefty reliever Will Smith at the 2016 trade deadline. He finished his 2016 campaign in High-A Brevard County, pitching to a 3.67 ERA, 10.0 K/9 rate and 5.0 BB/9 over 27 innings.

Two other suspensions were handed down on Friday, one to Toronto minor league right-hander Pedro Loficial for a positive test for metabolites of Stanozolol and one to Miami minor league outfielder Casey Soltis for a second positive test for drugs of abuse. Loficial will serve a 72-game suspension, while Soltis will serve 50 games. All three suspensions are due to start at the beginning of the 2017 season for each respective minor league team.

We are very disappointed to learn of Phil’s suspension, but we fully support the Minor League Baseball Drug Prevention and Testing Program and its enforcement by the Commissioner’s Office. Phil understands he made a mistake, and we fully anticipate that he will learn from this experience.

Confirming a report from Tuesday, the Diamondbacks officially signed right-hander Fernando Rodney to a one-year, $2.75 million contract on Friday. The 39-year-old stands to receive up to $4 million in incentives, per Jack MacGruder of FanRag Sports, with $250,000 kicking in when the veteran reaches 40, 50 and 60 appearances and $500,000 if he reaches 70.

Rodney came three games shy of the 70-appearance mark in 2016 during back-to-back stints with the Padres and Marlins. He put up a cumulative 3.44 ERA on the year, which effectively disguised the extreme split during his performances in San Diego and Miami. The Diamondbacks aren’t anywhere close to contending in 2017, but Rodney should stabilize the back end of their bullpen while providing Arizona GM Mike Hazen with a potential trade chip during next year’s deadline.

With Fernando, we’re getting an established Major League closer and a veteran presence in the bullpen. It is helpful to have someone with his experience on the back end to slow the game down and get the final three outs.